Early Times ReportJAMMU, Oct 15: Former RAW chief A S Dulat, who is known for his hobnobbing with separatists and Pakistani think-tanks and controversial views on Jammu & Kashmir, has committed a grave faux pas. He has said that the problem in Kashmir is political that needs a political solution and urged the Union Government to hold assembly elections in the state alongside general elections in May 2019.There was a "huge problem" in Kashmir, AS Dulat said, and added that the imposition of Governor's rule for a long period was not advisable and elections in the state should be held at the earliest."Kashmir is a political issue rather than an economic or security one. Elections to the state assembly should be held alongside the forthcoming general elections because if polls were not held soon, then it would become difficult to conduct them at a later stage," AS Dulat said. Is problem in Kashmir political as Dulat wants us to understand? The answer is a big NO. The problem in Kashmir is not political. Kashmir remained at the helm of affairs after 1947 for the major part. All the CMs of the state till date had been from Kashmir belonging to a particular religious sect. It was, and is, Kashmir, which dominated, continues to dominate, the civil secretariat, financial institutions, political and constitutional bodies, recruitment agencies and prestigious technical and professional institutions, including agricultural universities. It's people of Kashmir who have been occupying almost all the positions in the government and semi-government establishments. The fact of the matter is that Kashmir has been the most powerful region in the country politically with Jammu and Ladakh suffering under the Kashmiri rule and New Delhi always preferring Kashmir over even national interest.The problem in Kashmir is neither political nor economic. The causes of unrest in Kashmir are deeper. They are not fighting for chairs, jobs, financial and economic packages; they are fighting for something else. Everyone knows what the Kashmiri leaders want and yet AS Dulat and ilk say what they say. It's the likes AS Dulat who have always muddied the Indian waters in the state and condoned the crimes the India-haters commit in the Valley.